Zelaphelia's Return
by SummerRose12
Summary: Trequel! Zela has returned to London with a secret she fears will cut all ties to her family. But trouble comes as Henchcats have formed an army that poses a threat to the Junkyard. The Jellicles must now accept Macavity's help to live through peril. R&R!
1. La Vie Francais

**A/N: Finally got chapter one planned out. :) Hopefully, you all will like it. Sorry this didn't come sooner, but I have a whole list of excuses! One, there was school. Two, Community theatre. Three, more school. Four, I'm lazy, Five, not really in the mood to write. Six, I kind of wanted to overuse commas in that last excuse. ;) But now I am back, and I'm going to commit to this last chapter, again, a thousand apologies for being about three months late with it. Hope you all enjoy the thrilling conclusion of Zelaphelia's story!**

~^..^~

Nothing stirred near the peaceful docks of Le Havre. The day was regular; clear. Sailors would predict no omen of storm or harassing pirates for a good few days.

It wasn't unusual to see a good number of boats surrounding Le Havre's marina. They all sat huddled together, rhythmically bouncing up and down as quiet waves tumble beneath them, and striving for the shoreline. As it was expected of early summer, every vessel was pleasantly waiting with a warm sun and cool winds. In the common eye, or a feline on holiday, Le Havre's coast was practically a paradise.

Orion knew better. According to his mother, he had lived in Le Havre all his life. She took him to see each site repetitiously. He knew the city inside and out, even the parts his mother misguided him from seeing. Yet in a place known so well, who wouldn't go searching for the troubles and legends? And even so, at the youthful age of a year and a half, an ignorant tomkit knew his environment better than his own mother. And he was only happy to point it out. Anyone of his friends could realize his arrogance. But Orion's pride in himself made up for not hanging around many of his friends. That didn't make the days any less boring.

Today seemed different though. There were larger boats docked at Le Havre's shore. Yachts and small schooners. Usually that meant there were British or American tourists arriving. But no one was getting off the boats. They would have gone before noon and it was about eleven o'clock right now.

Curious, Orion almost wondered if he should see if it was coming in or coming out. However, he had more important things to do. If he didn't get back home with food, they wouldn't be able to pay the full rent this month. His mother lived with an old blind queen and her litter of kits. Next to a non-active ferry slip, there was a tugboat that had washed up next to the shoreline. No human ever bothered cleaning up the wreckage, so the small family of cats took over. Yet when Orion's mother came to Le Havre, the rent was half of the food she found.

The kit had understood this to be a fair trade; at least that didn't mean he had to give up half of his hunt, thankfully. But even his mother got into spots of trouble where food was scarce. He had to take over for her as the tom in their family, though mum was too proud to admit that.

Padding past the beach and all of the bright streets of Le Havre, all the people made Orion think that there might not be that many mice in the usual places. Thus, making his job ten times harder!

"Hey, 'Rion!" The dark colored kit's ears flattened at the high pitched noise of his best friend. She was pretty loud, but also kind of… pretty… for a queen, anyway.

He slowly turned over to face the white and yellow calico. "…Hey, Shilly… What's going on?"

"Well, I thought you were going to meet Ghaston, Elletri, and Tzippor at the bay today for a swim! Tzippor didn't believe you could swim, since you've never been in the water before, but I'm sure he's wrong… right?"

Orion made a face, angered enough that he felt like punching Tzipp for messing up his reputation. "Oh, he's wrong. And you can tell him I'll be there _in _the water before he even gets his claws wet! … I just have to get some grub first, though…"

"Oh, okay… can I come with you?" Shilly gave him a mischievous smile, not even waiting for an answer. The next thing Orion realized, he was walking around to the street market with one of his best friends.

Shilly was a very fun queen; if not a little devious at times. She came from an Irish background, and was actually one of Orion's only friends that spoke good English. Her bright eyes always shouted her mood, which never mouthed sour. And Orion knew for a fact that she had a crush on him. Of course, any queen his age would feel the same the second they saw him, but Shilly didn't expose it very well, which was why he didn't find her that attractive. Still, she was nice and clever, and that's what made her his best friend.

The queen kit looked at him with a bright smile, "So, what should we get for lunch today? Don't tell me you're hunting for birds because you're not very good at it."

Orion made a face, as he darted into the road with her. "I'm an excellent bird hunter. Those stupid birds just move around too much, so I don't waste my time."

The yellow-white queen laughed and simply shrugged. "Sure, Orion. Whatever you say. So, what are we looking for?"

"Food, obviously." Orion smirked at her. By the look on her face, he wanted her to be serious. "…We're going to get something from the market." He muttered, wishing she could take sarcasm.

Shilly stared at him in disbelief. "You do realize if a human catches you, they'll cut off your tail, right?"

"You're paranoid, Shilly!" He grumbled, giving her a light nudge on the shoulder. "Market food is the good stuff. And my mother needs the rent this month, so I'm helping her out."

"Okay, I know your mother, and she'll kill you if she finds out you took something from the venders."

Orion rolled his eyes, "What Ma doesn't know won't hurt her. I'll just tell her I noticed it fall off a fresh dump from the trash can and took a claim of it. Simple as that!"

Shilly smirked at him. "Fine. Just don't come crying to me if your tail is severed from your body."

"Whatever, Shilly…" Suppressing a hiss at her, Orion quietly stayed near the gutter of the street, peering around at the food venders calling out for purchases. Nothing was very good anyway, just a bunch of fruit and home-grown vegetables. It was like a cat couldn't find a decent meal!

However, he soon feasted his eyes upon one of the most delectable morsels in this silly fishing village; Trout caught from the Channel. They had this put in the market maybe once or twice a month. And he knew getting a couple in his claws would settle rent for maybe a few months.

Orion crouched down, heading toward the crowd of humans. "Stay here, Shill." He mumbled, trying to look discreet as he ran through the streams of legs.

It was unusual to be able to get through the market so easily. No one seemed to like cats in this town. But today, the only threat Orion received was a slight push from a heavy shopping bag. Nothing that he couldn't handle. In a moment, the young tom reached the large vending table where trout was neatly piled; their heads, fins, skin, and probably bones, removed.

Orion licked his lips as he padded close to one of the legs of the table. He was glad it was one of those fold-out tables and not one of those wooden ones like the older fishers in the village. This probably meant it was better merchandise! Orion spared a glance at the portly gentlemen running the stand. He had an abnormally large backside covered in a leather jacket. He faced another customer, his grubby hand scratching under his hat, probably attempting to count the amount of money in his hands. Stupid human.

The calico tomkit rolled his eyes and quickly distracted his appetite with the trout. At least they were organized by size, but the weight was more worrisome. Picking a few of the fish from the middle of the pile, Orion checked back to be sure he wasn't being watched. He grinned, quickly putting a few in his mouth and jumped off the table.

But right before he was about to walk away, he heard a shout behind him. "Chat stupide! Revenez ici avec mon poisson!"

Orion looked back for a fraction of a second, witnessing the obese fisherman try to get around his table. Well, it would be just embarrassing to get caught by a big human! Without a second though, Orion took off, smaller fish dropping from his mouth as he did.

He made an alerted growl at Shilly to run when he had finally gotten to her, his pursuer surprisingly not far away. "Mmmurrrr!" he shouted, flicking Shilly with his tail before continuing to run.

Shilly squeaked, the situation becoming clear to her. Before Orion realized it, she was the one ahead of him. "Hurry up!" She shrieked, crossing into an alley.

It reduced Orion to think how lucky they had gotten. The human being so slow and unfit, it was almost too easy to outmaneuver him. Both kits stopped behind trashcans at the corner, watching the man pass them. Orion shook his head in disbelief, but not looking at all surprised. "Too bad we didn't have a closer hiding spot… I could have stolen more fish by now…"

~^..^~

Their habitat was small and fusty. A shipwrecked tugboat off the coast of the English Channel had little space to give, which was why Lacote found this to be a generous offer. Zelaphelia had not complained.

Two years ago, a boat ride forced her anxieties to surface and was certain to drown her and drag her down to the depths of the ocean floor. There was so much risk to running away, but there was no way she was going to her family with this secret; one that she had to protect with all capabilities. A kitten was not something that would be taken lightly; not a henchcat's son.

When she first sensed he was inside of her, the stirring frightened her. How was she to do this on her own? How could she be a mother? Yet a few months later, she had given birth to one kit; a healthy boy wriggling beneath starlight; the inspiration for his name. Holding him in his arms dissolved her fear and self-skepticism. He was a living being that she had created, and would raise and nurse for days that grew steadily into two full years.

Orion's kittenish curiosity blossomed to cautious arrogance; a personality that placed him respectfully aware of his surroundings and of others, yet gave him confidence to grow plentifully in his environment. Perhaps a poor allowance on her part. He was so invigorated with life, though. He embraced every opportunity and explored new territory, piece by piece. Zela could not have asked for a better son; granted he had his flaws. One most abundantly, trouble never stopped following him.

The young tom came in, carrying a small load of mangled fish in his arms and inside his mouth. Zela tiredly smiled at her son, wondering how he had gotten so little time for fishing this morning, and still had so much to show for it. Orion padded into the den, placing the largest fish in a doorway. "And there's the payment for Lacote!" he announced proudly.

Zelaphelia fell silent for a moment, the amount of impress shown in her raised brow. This was not met without concern, however, and Zela knew her son would despise the criticism. "…You went fishing for all of this?" she asked, grinning as he set a fish in front of her.

"Of course, Mum." He said, grinning back at her proudly. His mimicry was always a sign of high self-esteem.

Zela grinned, "Pretty clean just after being swiped from the ocean this morning…"

Orion blinked, instantly seeing through his mother's "innocent" observation. One trait most noticeable in her son was his keen ability to decipher. But with youth, at least she was able to do the same thing. Orion grinned widely at his mother, as only a silent way of patronizing. "Good hunting grounds." He said simply, beginning to rip off the fish meat with his teeth.

There was no response she could give that wouldn't be condescending to him. "Grounds, love?" She smirked lightly, "Don't you mean waters?"

Orion looked at her, grinning innocently, though he knew internally that his mother knew. "Well… yeah, that's what I meant…"

Zela's smirk finally dropped, less amused now that she knew what her son had done. She sighed roughly and sat in front of him with a stern expression. "Orion, I've told you how bad it is to steal, haven't I?"

Orion gave a steely grunt, standing up as he dragged his fish to the other side of the den. "Ma, we needed the food for rent! And hunting takes too long anyway. Quit complaining…"

Zela glared and stalked over to her son, forcing him to look at her. "_Ne me parle pas de cette façon, jeune chaton!_" Her fiery French normally crossed her son as fierce and violent, so Orion simply looked down.

"_Desole, Mama_…" he grumbled begrudgingly. "…I just wanted to help."

"This isn't the right way to help." Zela sighed, giving him a comforting nuzzle so he knew she wasn't mad at him. Orion just didn't have the right kind of morals. Personally, she blamed the kind of kits he was always with. Those kits that lived on the street, where stealing was the only way to survive. Heavyside knew she never taught him to do that. "Love, if you can't catch the rent, I will always be here to help you."

Though this was the best intentions, Orion glared at his dinner and pushed it away. "I don't need your help, Ma. I can catch anything I want! It's just boring…"

She sighed roughly, taking the fish from the floor and licking the skin clean. "I know it's boring. But I can't stand it when you steal. And you know Lacote hates it too. If she finds out they were stolen, she'll kick us out. You have to know how risky it is to steal from humans. There's more at stake than a ride to the pound."

Orion sat silently for a moment, looking absentminded, yet fairly irritated. Lacote and Orion didn't very much see eye to eye. The old queen found Orion impertinent. He found her as outdated. On too many occasions, Orion had gotten close to getting himself and his mother evicted from the tugboat home. Zela was not about to let this be the straw that broke the camel's back.

"Don't steal anymore, Orion. Your friends might think it's right, but I don't want us to end up on the streets…"

"…Sometimes, the streets look better than this stupid boat…"

Zela gazed at her son, sighing roughly. "Orion, when I was your age, I would have given anything to have a home like this. I never found any place permanent. So be thankful that you do."

Orion nodded softly, though he completely disagreed. She smiled softly and hugged her young son close to her. "… I love you, my little Orio." She purred.

The little tom fussed in retaliation, squirming out of his mother's paw. "Yeah, yeah, love you too… You're messing up my fur, Ma!" He jumped out, giving her a stiff, short nuzzle before padding back to the door. "I'm going to go for a walk!" he said quickly, smiling his large, child-like smile before quickly running out; "Bye, Mum!"

As the boy disappeared from sight, Zela sighed and pushed the fish away. It was like he would never learn. He always said the same things and had no change in his behavior. As if all of her teachings to her son had gone to waste. The red-gold queen, semi-content with how their conversation went and not at all concerned for where ever her son was going, started on eating her trout.

She didn't have much time to ponder and eat at the same time. In only a few minutes, a white kitten jumped inside with speckles of brown splattered over his face. He smiled innocently and gave Zela a nuzzle on her arm, "Hi!"

Zela smiled lightly at the kitten, "Hi, Yule."

Yule smiled, padding over the larger fish that sufficed as rent. "Is this for me?" he asked hopefully.

Zela grinned, continuing to eat, "And your siblings."

Yule stared at her, looking confused, "What are 'siblings'?"

"…Your brothers and sisters, Yule." Zela chuckled and watched the kitten for a moment, "Where are they, anyway?"

"With Mummy!" he replied matter-of-factly.

"Oh, where's Mummy?" The gold-red queen grinned, wondering herself where Lacote was. "Still on a walk?" If one of her kits already made it back, then Lacote wasn't far behind.

"Uh huh!" Yule started chewing at the tail of the trout, and looking like he was enjoying it. Zela smiled warmly at the kit, about to continue questioning the kit until a low, yet recognizably feminine voice came coughing at the door. "Yule… Don't bother Zela. Go eat somewhere else, okay?"

The kitten blinked, before grabbing his small trout and scampering to another part of the boat. Zela chuckled as she sat down, continuing to eat by herself. "He wasn't causing any harm, Lacote."

The old queen entered inside, her other three kits following behind her to devour one of the freshly caught fish. "Bah, it's what's wrong with youth these days, dear. They have no discipline. Our only advantage is that there it is never too young to learn good manners."

It would be easy to determine that Lacote was once very lovely and petite in her young age. She had one blue eye and one green with a coat that had once been snow white, but had grown grey and unkempt as time had passed. She was an exceptionally neat queen, but kept her looks messy and unattended, as she had raised so many kits. Late at night when her younger kits were asleep, she had taken to tell Zela raunchy stories of her numerous lovers and the intimate details of her life before motherhood had completely overtaken her. She claimed that the litter she was currently raising would be her last, as she had several litters to follow in her legacy.

Zela enjoyed the old queen's company, but found her traditional ways slightly hypocritical. She was a structured queen, and disliked the riff-raff that roamed the streets of Le Havre. But with such wild stories of her youth, Zela found her judgment of the teenaged cats, particularly her son, unsettling and rude. But Zela had not gotten the courage to make this obvious; instead, she calmly ignored her landlady's hypocrisy and merely coexisted while they raised each of their litters.

Zela chuckled quietly as she continued with her lunch. "My son brought home our rent this week." She gestured toward the fish that her kits were mangling to bones.

"Ah… I see." Lacote nodded as she sat down beside Zela, carefully watching the kits. "How very nice of him… Didn't get it from that gang he's been hanging around with, hm?" The old queen gruffly raised her eyebrow.

Zela rolled her eyes. "Don't be ridiculous. Orion isn't around those types of cats."

Lacote simply tutted, "So naïve. Zela, where else would he go each day? To be with gang cats that you don't know. If you were smart, you'd follow him around more. He might end up being a 'nipper if you're not careful!"

Zela snorted, "I don't think I need to worry about that. He wouldn't be so stupid."

"They never seem like that at first. But unless you keep them under close surveillance at this adolescent age, then they'll be a hundred miles away from you!"

"…How observant, Lacote." She muttered. Zela knew she should appreciate the advice from such a worldly queen, but she was confident her way of raising Orion was a better way to take care of her child. Lacote didn't know where half of her litters were now; there had to be some factoring difference in how they raised their kits. "I will take care of my kit, thanks."

Lacote made a face, quietly standing up and taking Zela by the paw. "Follow me." She muttered, her tone being one Zela had heard before; it was a voice that made her lose all confidence in her opinions.

The old queen led her outside of the tugboat, pointing up ahead to a group of cats by the beach, some being summoned out of the water by a their leader; other lounging by the beach. Among them, was a dark calico tomkit, slowly making his way to the busy docks. "See that?" Lacote huffed, watching the kit with particular disdain. "It's call initiation… Better go before your kit ends up drowned in the ocean."

Zela stared out by the ocean's white lining, gathering the betraying sight of her son walking toward the boats; an area he knew was off-limits to him. Perhaps investing in Lacote's parenting methods would not be too much a mistake…

~^..^~

Dares were no stranger to Orion. There was a reason for this, of course. For one thing, he liked the risks; the adrenaline that fueled his veins and sped his heart-rate. For another, the small gang of adolescents was watching, and the tomkit planned to impress every one of them; especially Shilly. She was his best friend, after all, and probably the only one that had faith that he could travel across the humans' docks, hop on one of the boats, then jump off and swim back to the group.

Not only would he get the group's approval, Orion was positive that it would grab Shilly's attention of him. He worried sometimes that she would go for a tom like Tzippor when they got older, and Orion simply refused to let that happen. He smiled lightly back at Shilly, who was looking at him with encouragement, but also flashes of sadness and concern. Now excited to complete the dare, Orion quickly sneaked up to the human's docks.

He frowned, finding the area an uninteresting challenge. It was too easy to get through the docks. He could pick any boat and have minimal difficulty getting by any sailor. He smirked confidently, walking across in the summer sun with a casual saunter. A few humans actually passed by him without giving any notice. This only boosted his confidence even more. So much so, he looked back at the group of kittens to see if they were still watching him.

From a far off distance, he saw them all staring up at the docks. However, his smirk disappeared when he saw Shilly talking to an adult queen; to his dismay, it was recognizably his mother. Mentally, he cursed, now more quickly choosing a boat he could jump out of his. His newest plan was simple: swim to shore, and then make a run for it.

He looked back at the shore to see how close his mum was getting, and the panic rose in him as he saw she was already running up to the docks, searching for him fervently and with a look of pure anger. "Uh oh…" Orion bit his lip, looking around again before seeing a few humans pulling ropes from one of the boats. Yes, that was perfect! It was about to sail off! His mother would never see him jump off and swim to shore, then he could wait a few hours to dry off, and then act as though nothing had happened!

Excited with this new deception he had in mind, Orion scampered off to the boat a few passengers quickly hoping on. He hadn't realized it was a ferry ship, but it would still work that way. As he thought idly, Orion had taken no mind to the crates of animals that were being loaded a cargo ship. He accidentally bumped one of the cages with his shoulders, causing a group of hens to cluck like mad women.

Orion jumped a foot in the air, looking around to see if his mother had seen or heard this. He frowned, his ears flattening in kittenish fear as he saw his mother's eyes meet his. She formed a glare, quickly stalking over to him. He couldn't hear her over the clucking chickens, but he saw her mouth forming the pronunciation of his name, her expression growing more terrifying with each step she took. Orion remembered this look when he was much younger. It was the look that alarmed him to upcoming punishment. He wasn't about ready to face her in such a frightening state, so as quickly as he could, Orion jumped onto the back of the ferry ship.

Upon seeing this, his mother started sprinting her way to the ship. Her scary voice was now much clearer, "Orion! Get off that boat right now!"

He was half considering following her drill sergeant orders, but he didn't want to look like a Mumma's boy in front of Shilly and the rest of the gang! What would they think of him? He'd be shamed for good! "Mum-"

His explanation was quickly stifled as the ferry started to move. Orion's claws dug into the floors, but he looked up at his mother to see what she was doing. To his surprise, she was no longer on the dock. Nowhere in sight of the Marina "Mu-Mum?" he breathed, quietly confused.

"You are in so much trouble, young tom." Orion's ears flattened at the sound of his mother's voice behind him. He yelped, quickly turning around to face his mother.

He sheepishly grinned at her, trying to at least act innocent. Of course, by the scowl visible on her face, she wasn't going to fall for that. "Mum… I… I…"

"Not a word. We're swimming to shore, then we're going to have a long discussion about this, got it?" Zelaphelia glared as she took hold of his paw, about to jump into the water with him.

But before they could leap, Orion felt a sharp pain in his pelt. He let out a yelp, squirming around in a human's grip. He mewled and looked up, the sharp gaze his captor's gaze staring at him with a slight smirk. Orion noticed out of the corner of his eye that his mother was trapped in the other hand, though she was scratching at him more viciously than Orion knew she could.

The man chuckled, walking up through the ferry with both cats held tightly in his arms. He muttered something about stowaways, a word Orion did not know the meaning of. In what seemed like a moment, they were tossed into empty cages and locked inside. The tomkit stared around in fear, pawing at the cage's door, as he had never been in such a confined space before. "Mum?" he squeaked, pawing up at the holes in the cage, trying to get out somehow. "Mumma! I'm stuck! Help!"

"Orion! Calm down, son! It's okay. Just calm down, okay? Everything's going to be fine." Zelaphelia's voice from a neighboring cage did calm him down somewhat, but Orion still was quite fearful over what was happening.

"Mum!" he squeaked again, "I'm scared… What's going to happen to us?"

"The human didn't toss us overboard, at least. He looked like he liked us, so I think we'll be alright." His mother's voice was unusually collected. How could she be so calm while so closed off and boxed in such a small space? Even smaller than the tugboat they called home?

"But where are we going, Mum? I don't like it here!" He was completely panicked, in fact. He knew they were on a ferry boat, but he had no idea where it was going, or if they would be able to get back home. Shilly would go out of her mind when she heard about this!

He heard Zela's quiet sigh close to him. Surprisingly, he looked up at her cage and could faintly make out the dim glow of her eyes. "I don't know just yet, Orion… But we'll find out soon, and we'll get home as quickly as possible, okay?"

Orion nodded quietly, trying to act a bit calmer, as his mother had told him too. He sniffled quietly as he curled up by the side of the cage, just wanting to continue hearing his mother's voice and have her tell him that things would be okay and they wouldn't be harmed. He was having so much doubt that such a thing would happen.

Suddenly, he heard a booming voice from above calling, "_Good afternoon, Passengers, this is your captain speaking. We are currently heading way to London. Our expected arrival time will be in a few hours, so just sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride."_

Instead of the comforting words that he had wanted from his mother, Orion heard her utter a curse word instead…


	2. Reunited

Strung from the rolling cloud storms, sunlight streaked into the ocean and through London. It seemed to have a calming affect after a long, bitter rain. But London was still wet and dripping, and had the murky feeling to it; as if all life had been sucked away and anything that was stepped in was nothing but discomfort. But the sun was giving the day such hope that the moist, humid air acted as proficient weather. But if Tugger had to choose, he'd prefer it was storming.

"Tugs, if you're going to be completely distracted, could you at least look at me so I can pretend you're listening?"

Tugger glanced up at the creamy-colored, Tokinese queen, grinning faintly at her. "I'm listening to you, Jeza." he lied.

Jezabella grinned back at him thinly, and then continued on her queenly rant based on some boring subject like her family or some such nonsense. He didn't really care that much. He'd only started dating her a few weeks ago and he still counted it as being non-exclusive. He could afford not to listen to her, especially over something so trivial.

But she interested him all the same. Their first meeting had been in a local pub farther north in London, and he had gotten particularly close to her by that night, though this was easily blamed on their heavy consumption of alcohol.

Now that he thought about it, most of their interactions after that nigh consisted of alcohol and music and motel rooms. It had been some time; they were getting to know each other a little better beyond a bottle of wine. But Tugger didn't need twelve dates and about six or seven nights together to know the finery of Jezabella. There was a familiarity to the swagger in her step or the manipulative purse of her lips that curled into a satisfied smile.

It wasn't easy to read her after that, though, which he didn't mind. He always liked a little mystery in his queen. That was the interesting thing about her; the uncanny ability to surprise him, which had come more often than not. After their first night together, she disappeared on him for weeks. The next time he saw her was at the same bar that he picked her up at. Slowly, this process came to repeat itself and they began to bump into each other more and more. Eventually, they just stopped proceeding to their aloof facades and learned how to have a relationship without a string of one-night stands together.

But she was an easy-going queen with very few issues, and the ones she did have, they were trying to work through or simply ignore. Currently, that consisted of her starvation for attention, which Tugger feared was a primary personality trait.

"So, are we going out tomorrow, or what?" Jeza raised an eyebrow at him expectantly, apparently not in a good mood from their current time together.

Tugger gave her not much more than a grin that replied a subtle patience with her tone. He never understood what he did wrong with her, but he never really cared. "We'll go to that Italian place down the street from the Junkyard. I'll meet you at the gate, say around… seven?"

Jezabella took a pause, guessable from either awed silence of his quick planning or pondering the idea. Tugger was able to take a breath at her approving smile. "Sounds brilliant, babe."

She gave him a light kiss on his lips, "I'll see you then." With that, the Tokinese queen left down the street in the trademark saunter Tugger had grown to enjoy.

As he walked back down through the shipping yard, now taking into consideration the past few months, and how much happier he had been. It had been a long journey, yet he felt like he had come out the other end a little bit stronger. Jeza certainly helped that along. He didn't feel dependent anymore with her around. He felt like he could be the Rum Tum Tugger properly with a queen that simply liked to play games as much as he did. It made perfect sense to let their odd relationship reach natural progression; just as long as 'natural progression' wasn't too fast.

Tugger realized suddenly as he watched the troubled waves rushing down below the docks that he didn't normally take these walks. Although, he'd never admit it to the new little kits around the 'yard, he liked keeping to himself nowadays. It was peace he hadn't tried to experience before; however, he was going to try to be alone very little. The solitude would just make him feel old, and Heavyside help him if he ended up anything like his now grandfather brother. No matter how cute Victoria and Misto's kits had become, he knew better than to feel like he'd want one himself. No, with his strategy, things with any queen would get as serious as it was now with Jezabella. Otherwise, he had no interest in settling himself.

Traveling slowly, Tugger entertained himself by kicking a rock ahead of him, hoping that maybe he could find another distraction to keep him away from home. He glanced around with a slight frown, and then realized that humans were unloading a cargo ship not far ahead of him. This wasn't too interesting at first, and his immediate reaction was to walk around so he wouldn't bump into a human. However, as he stepped around towering crates and bound tonnage, Tugger was caught by the desperate mewls of a kitten.

It was an odd, familiar cry that reminded Tugger of Lidi, Victoria and Misto's youngest. She once cried like that for her father after her paw had a thorn in it. Of course, this whimpering sounded more panicked. The Maine Coon followed the sounds past as few docked boats, and frowned as he finally found the source of the cacophony. A cat-carrier was screaming and rattling hysterically. "Mum!" it cried, "Mummy! Where are you?!"

Tugger finally smirked as he realized what was going on. Obviously, it must have been a kitten shipped from its mother just recently. A pet, maybe? With an amused, lopsided grin, Tugger padded closer to where the cage was amongst other cargo, and examined the inside of the small cell with quiet interest. Inside, a pair of frightened, auburn eyes stared up at him, lit with terror and absence of where or what was going on.

"Morning, little guy." Tugger greeted genially. The kitten didn't have too much light in his cage, but Tugger could make out the look of him. He didn't look too young; maybe a year or two old. He was a tortoiseshell kitten, looking very tense and unsettled.

"P-p-please," the kitten stuttered, "Can you help me? I gotta go home, but I can't find my mum…"

"I don't know if she's with you, buddy." Tugger answered, glancing around for a moment in case there were humans around with another carrier.

The kitten quickly protested, "But she was! Some human stuffed me and my mum in cages and brought us here! Please, get me out of here!"

"Hm… Did you just get off that schooner, then?"

"Yes! And I think my mum's still there too! Please, help me?!"

Tugger knew that he was never one to get involved in someone else's business, especially if it involved humans. However, the kitten seemed genuinely desperate to leave and find his mother, and he didn't have a collar, so he must not have been claimed by humans. Perhaps they were shipcats that got caught. Whatever the reason they were here, the Maine Coon decided not to pry, but he had more morals than to leave a kitten alone.

Tugger smiled faintly, "Alright, kid, give me a minute." He examined the lock used on the carrier, needing to see what he had to work with. It was pretty standard; two prongs needing to move together in order for the door to come out. Tugger knew he didn't exactly have the muscle mass in his arms to push them together. Instead, he widened his jaw and hooked both prongs between the spaces in his teeth, and bit all the power his mouth allowed him. The cage door squeaked, signaling its vulnerability. The Maine Coon carefully dragged the cage open before gently lifting his mouth out of the prongs. The kit was free.

A little tortoiseshell hopped out quickly and ran back around to him. Tugger was glad to have a good look of him. Poor kit had his fur so ruffled; he must have been in that internal pandemonium for hours. Aside from that, he was mostly black, with several gold patches that were inconsistent and faded into his coat. Tugger was glad to see the relief that the kit had in his eyes. At least he wasn't jumping around in a cage any longer; attracting attention and all that.

"Thank you!" the kit breathed, his heart rate still needing to slow.

Tugger grinned and nodded nobly to the kit, whom he now noticed was studying his rescuer in awe. It didn't surprise Tugger that a kitten was admiring him as most of them did. However, he was momentarily curious about the peculiar look that the tomkit had in his eyes.

It filled Tugger with familiarity, though he could not relate to where he could have possibly felt it before. It just seemed like a distant dream that lasted for less than a few seconds.

Easily forgetting the feeling, Tugger lightly grinned. "What's your name, kit?"

With a smile, the kit answered: "Orion."

"Orion?" Tugger tried the name for a moment before nodding. That was a name that seemed very Jellicle to him. "Well then, Orion, I suppose we should go find your mum?"

Orion's eyes glanced over to the schooner that had brought him here, and Tugger detected a flicker of anxiety, but it went away quickly. "Yeah," the kit answered, "I think she's still on the boat though."

"Then there is not time to waste, is there?" Tugger grinned as he guided Orion around a few crates and barrels, examining the area for a pathway into the ship. He swiveled in a fool-proof pattern to remain discreet and unseen. True, it wasn't one of Tugger's more practiced activities, but sneaking was slowly becoming a talent of his since Jezabella came into his life. Bound with determination, Tugger moved swiftly past the large work boots of sailors and took the kit's arm as they approached the boat's plank. He had to pause and think over how he could circle around the men in front, along with Orion, since he wasn't about to live the tomkit by himself.

However, after a small gasp from Orion, Tugger soon realized that there was no reason to maneuver into the boat. Instead, there was a string of unsettled grunts and hisses as a rattling carrier bounced in a sailor's grip. Tugger raised an eyebrow, quickly following the human as he stepped off the main plank. No doubt the cat he carried was a mother in distress. As she was carried off, mewling and growling, the sailor was simply making humorous remarks of endearment to the carrier as he began to travel toward its twin.

"Hm…" Tugger paused thoughtfully, "Looks like your mum is …Orion?" Unbeknownst to the Maine coon, Orion had taken immediate action in the rescue of his mother. Tugger cursed under his breath, observing that the kit was trailing several meters from him.

"Hey, Kid! Wait a second!" he called out, carefully following after the courageous kitten. Although he was frustrated, Tugger took notice that Orion had adopted the same sneaking tactics his leopard-spotted guide had used. Despite Orion's impulse, Tugger was silently impressed. "Orion, you'll get yourself caught!" he hissed, quickly trying to catch up.

Orion glanced back, frowned, and then refocused his attention on his mother. "How do we get past the sailor?" He whispered quietly, taking sudden refuge behind a barrel.

Tugger sighed, but seeing he had caught up, he let go of Orion's recklessness. "Give it a second okay?" he breathed, wanting to keep calm as he tried to think. The human had stopped in front of Orion's former prison, just as expected, and placed his mother the same place. The man took a quiet notice to the open caged, and immediately started back towards the ship. Certainly, humans needed to learn to care for more than themselves. The fact that they couldn't take time to even ask about a kitten made Tugger annoyed. Sighing softly, the Maine coon took a few glances before nudging the kit. "Go!" he spat, quickly running forward. They had to reach her before anyone else did; Tugger knew this.

He was quite proud for being so logical about this situation; it was quite gallant in his perspective, even if Munkustrap was busy as he usually was, Tugger didn't doubt his brother would be impressed. As they hurried along to the cage, Orion pulled ahead in a sprint. "Mum!" he called out, "Mum! Mum! I'm here!"

"Orion? Orion, honey, are you okay?"

In a sudden pause, Tugger had to stop a few inches from the cage. That voice. This queen had _her_ voice. Fearing what would appear behind the caged door, Tugger stopped some pawsteps away. The air even smelled like her. But she could not be here, could she? Orion had run up the cage, rubbing himself up against the bars and looking up at his mother. "I'm fine! Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm okay. What happened? How did you get out?"

"This tom helped me!" Orion turned over to Tugger desperately and took a step forward. "Can you get her out like you did for me? Please?"

Tugger didn't want to see this queen's face, fearing he would see_ her_ again. But the kitten stared up at him with a look of panic. Tugger was not about to let him go against this alone. Taking a deep breath, he stepped over to the cage, his eyes down on his paws. It took all his strength to not look at her face as he opened the cage the same way. However, as the creak of the door exposed itself, he could do nothing else but stare up, and have _her_ violet eyes were staring back at him...

...

There was no reason, no plausible reason really, that London should invade Zela's life. Their life in Le Havre, though it was far from perfect, had been her new home. And seeing the tom she had almost loved had convinced her of that. Seeing her old home only reminded her that there was toxic air in this world that held all of her baggage. If she had any say in it, none of it would be brought upon her son. None of it.

Had it not been two years in the making, the reappearance of the Rum Tum Tugger would not have been of such a short-lived inconvenience. In only moments, all her fears came alive. There was now a possibility of the Jellicles or her father knowing about her son and where she had been hiding. Everything she had done to protect them would be lost, and certainly no one would understand her reasons. Tugger had an indecipherable look present on his face. Zela could only take this to be his defense against a painful shock. He should know already that it was a shock to her as well.

A silence lingered between them before Zela looked down at Orion and nuzzled him gently. "Thank this tom for his help." She murmured, avoiding the gaze of her former friend. It was a cold thing to do, but the only thing she could think of to do was mask her acknowledgement of him with uncertainty.

Orion has mumbled the requested thank you, but he seemed to sense the tension between the adults. Tugger had no longer acknowledged Orion. Instead, he had come up with a frown in order to respond to this unlikely event. "Where have you been?" he asked flatly, "And since when did you have a kid with you?"

"Orion, we have to go." Zela nudged her son along, expecting to leave Tugger with no explanation, but she was suddenly grabbed, forced to look at the tom she had avoided thinking of for years.

"Don't just walk away after two years!" Tugger hissed, his grip tightening and his face severely out of his character, "You disappeared without a trace. No one knew what happened to you! Everyone thought you were fucking dead or kitnapped! You couldn't even leave a note or something to let us know! What the fuck were you thinking?!"

Zela stared up at him for only a moment, observing the rage in his eyes, this gave her enough fear to look away from him. "You're hurting me, Tugger," she informed him. The gold-red queen felt his grip loosen once she had finally recognized him.

And the tension seemed easily broken once Orion began lightly scratching at Tugger's leg, only making him wince a twinge. "Hey! Let go of my mum!"

Tugger stared down at the kit before releasing his grip. He could not let go of his gaze on her, all of his expectations impatiently awaiting her explanation. Finally, Zela sighed and carefully took Orion into her arms. "They wouldn't have understood. That why I didn't tell anyone. I just knew if I stayed in London…He would have found out, and I wasn't going to jeopardize my or my kit's safety." She noticed Orion look at her, realizing that they were talking about him also, though his mother was being far too cryptic to his liking.

Tugger seemed to comprehend what she had said, and could see in the kitten's eyes that his mother had not explained any of this to him. The leopard-spotted tom furrowed his brow. "What about your mother, hm? And your sisters? You left them without anything."

"That doesn't matter now, does it?" Zela huffed, pushing the guilt down, "I came here by mistake, Tugger. Our lives back in France were good. And I intend to go back as soon as possible." She walked past him, and ignored her son's questioning look. He wouldn't know about the dangers in London, if she could help it.

Suddenly, she heard Tugger call, "Zela, wait!"

Out of surprise, she paused; perhaps only to be sure his statement would be worth her time. He moved in front of her and touched her shoulder, "Look, any boat to France, won't be leaving for a few house…At least come and see them. They all really missed you…"

Zela quickly shook her head at the suggestion, and shrugged off his shoulder, "I won't give anyone the chance to judge me for my choices. And I won't risk being discovered."

"I think it's a bit late for that." He pointed out, whether it was a joke or not was unclear to Zela. Either way, she did not seemed impressed. She continued walking from the scene, but was once again stopped by Tugger moving in front of her. "Zela, c'mon!" He groaned, putting his paw back on her shoulder so that she would stop. "Zela, please. Your Mum needs to see you. Let her know she has a grandkit."

"Why are you trying so hard to get me to stay?" Zela hissed at him, setting Orion back down beside her. "I like my life house it is, Tugger. I don't want to change it now, just because I came here by accident! The tribe will live without my presence, my mother… my mother will just have to understand, I suppose." She took her son's paw, and began walking away once more.

This time, Tugger didn't stop her by force. Instead, she simply heard him sigh and call out again: "You're mother's sick. She's dying."

This did stop Zela, and it took a moment, but the guilt crept it's way back up to her and forced her to turn herself. "…What?"

"You heard me." Tugger said, walking over to her, "…We found out a week ago. She isn't too sick yet…but if you left now, she won't survive to see you again. Or your son."

Zela stared at the leopard spotted tom, as if questioning this explanation. "…Why didn't you tell me?"

"It didn't come to mind until just now." He sighed, glancing at her up and down before running his paws through his mane awkwardly. "Look… I know you went through a lot by yourself, and that sucks. But… you don't have to be alone now. At least for a day?...I think you owe them at least that much before you decide to go off again."

Zela stared down at Orion, who had not said anything throughout the conversation. She knew if she left now, she would have to explain all of this to him, and inside, she knew that wouldn't be enough for him one day. Breathing deeply for a second, she knew for her own reasons, as well as for Orion's, the harder choice was going to be the best one at the moment. "…I'll see them, then." She decided, lifting Orion back into her arms. "You're going to meet your family, Orion." She told him with a quiet smile. "Think you'd be up for that?"

Orion still looked confused, but he nodded. "Yeah, I guess." He mumbled.

Tugger stared at the pair, but seeing as the visit was now confirmed, he began leading them back to the Junkyard…

...

The warehouse seemed the same, but was really a corpse of its former self. It became a sanctuary as needed, but it provided nothing for no one. And as it always was, it remained in its darkness. After Macavity's scheme, dated two years back, failed miserably to eliminate the Jellicles, the activities of the hidden paw were short lived. The henchcats had their usual chores and were given small assignments, and it was all but enough to keep the business of the Hidden Paw alive. He had expanded himself shortly after his daughter's disappearance, a few tribes did deals with him, and it kept him safe.

But the workings of Macavity were deeply unsatisfied, and this began to show as the criminal activity in London was drawing close to a small percentage. However, though the Warehouse had grown into seclusion, Macavity now used his time to focus attention on ridiculing the Henchcats. This was nothing different from early on, but the degradation would become a public affair, where cats would be tortured for almost any reason. No one truly knew why this was happening, except for a very lonely tom that slept below his dark home in the cells.

It was there, Marcetheus awaited for a time that all of the hopes he had of the future were not in vain. For two miserable years, his energy had been drained of him, and all that was left for him were the nightmares and the torture. The only consolation he received were words from Barnabas, Wynestelle, and Jezabella; three Warehouse cats he knew certainly would not stand for the abuse of the henchcats much longer. Even with such people in his life that helped him escape the pain, he still used his time to mistreat any mental strength he had.

Marceth was poisoned in his head; dark thoughts overcame him daily of his failure to the only queen that made a difference in his life. Of course now, every time he thought of her name, he could only cringe in the hope that they would be together again. Every inkling he had to find her again had been crushed by the tom that forced their separation. Because of him, Marceth's only motivation for living was to see Macavity's suffering and, if possible to find his mate; both were goals he intended to see accomplished soon.

He sat in the cells more often than not, seeing prisoners huddled in the corner where Zela used to dwell, and he thought often of their talks together; their mating, and each kiss he had given her. Quite a few cats had tried to convince both of them while she stayed in the cells that neither of them were truly and love, and were only manipulating each other to find escape. But Marceth saw the truth that Zela was somewhere in the world, waiting for him. Her crumpled note last delivered to him was the only memento he kept on his person, keeping it as hope to see his queen again.

But as of now, he was still the guard of the cells, surrounded by the force fields that made him unable to use or practice the powers he had discovered almost two years ago. Macavity had given him quite a few sessions of torture before he finally grew bored and simply allowed Marceth a pitiful life in the darkness. The only reason he wasn't rotting in a prisons he guarded was probably because he still had magic. Even until the day he was allowed that privilege, Marceth had sworn to Barnabas he would not use it until he said. And so Marceth had waited for his time where he could finally feel the release of Magic his mother often spoke of. Wynestelle visited often, but Marceth took no comfort in it, he just wanted his mother close for her loyalty, and nothing more.

Barnabas, on the other hand, was the tom he went to, not for comfort or nostalgia, but for extraction of information. Over the first few months of actually speaking, Marceth found it incredibly easy to admit everything that had happened to him; being beaten after betraying the boss, standing up to him and telling him the exact truth of why the scheme had gone so wrong, and that the shame Macavity now bore was given to him by a traitorous henchcats that had somehow miraculously lived through the ordeal. It was still a question in his mind why Macavity decided to let him go, but Marcetheus did not find any graciousness out of the situation. He only continued his work as he did best, withstood beatings as he did best, and waited as he did best for two long years.

But even as he sat down in his regular seat and watched enemies of the Hidden Paw rot in the cells, Marceth couldn't help but think that he would waste away in anxiety. He didn't know when or how Barnabas planned his rebellion, but he did know that there were many followers in this mutiny, and the explosion would happen soon.

Paused from his usual thoughts, there was a knock on the cell doors: "Marceth, it's Jeza! Open up!"  
>The usual heads popped up, prisoners expecting escape, but Marceth kept his head down and unlocked the door with a flick of his staff; a new accessory, thanks to the limp on his leg, healed crookedly from being broken.<p>

He stared at Jezabella's feet, the tonkinese queen was unchanged in many ways. He had remembered Zela telling him how much he hated the queen, and he slowly realized why; not that he said a thing, the queen was still his mentor, and for that he did not show disrespect.

"I just finished a nice chat with Barney." She explained, grinning as she checked her claws, and looked impressed with herself, "He's gotten done with a meeting for the boss, you see. And the boss was thinking of a public execution; isn't that sweet?" She glanced behind her, noticing the prisoners look up in worry.

Marceth did not copy their example, "Who is it?"

"The question isn't 'who,' dear, it's when."

"And?"

Jezabella smirked, "Prepare to bring yourself up from this dreary little world, Marceth. You see, he's signed my death warrant."

This time, Marceth did look up. "Why?" he asked. Had the hidden paw discovered her?

"A lot of reasons, dear. Of course, I'm not supposed to know about it. And I'm supposed to be the last in the line of traitors." She glanced behind her, knowing a few cells down were imprisoned henchcats, having thought of making their own rebellion of retiring the Hidden Paw's services too early, and they must have been listening. "I'm the Wildcard, you see. I'm the martyr. No one expects my death, and that is why it will be such an outrage to everyone in the Warehouse. See, Barney told me to be nice to as many cats as I could. I know why now. And he's planning something big tomorrow. Be there, and be sure you're ready."

Marceth stared at her for a moment, and was silent. Then finally, he knew what to ask: "Ready for what?"

"He's having the executions outside, you see. And you'll get that vengeance you wanted." She leaned down, playfully kissing his cheek, then turned her heels and waved a paw. "Ta, dear." And with that, she left.

Marceth sat in the room, and his paws itched themselves in a flurry of activity. Outside, there was no force field, hiding his powers. Outside, he could use his powers. And finally, the Hidden Paw would get what he deserved….

...

Jezabella strutted around the henchcats common area, giving polite smirks; knowing smirks. Months of planning were now coming to an end. The ideas in her mate's twisted mind would finally come into reality; and to some degree, everyone she spotted knew this already.

As she rounded the corner into a dark corridor, she headed to where she knew their leader would be. Macavity had practically kept himself alienated from henchcats, unless he found time to take his anger out of them. She had no doubt the boss was planning some elaborate new plot, but Barney had decided not to let him have his chance. After all, they had a not-so-secret weapon, and he had been waiting a long time to get his revenge on the Hidden Paw.

The Tonkinese queen entered into the room at the end of the hall, and smirked quietly as she saw a very poised Barney waiting patiently for her. The scar on his cheek was still visible, and it raised as she entered the room. "Well?" he said expectantly.

"He'll be ready." She said, grinning as she walked in and moved close to him, "And you better be ready also. I don't plan to die just as much as you don't plan to lose this war."

"You're far too sexy to have that much blood spilt, Jeza." Barnabas smirked as he wrapped an arm around her middle and gave her a sound kiss, "Relax, would you? I need a second after all. Once this heap of dirt is ours, and we rise it from the ashes, you and I will have no fear."

"Thank Everlast in that." Jezabella grinned as she placed a paw on his chest, "You planting all that stolen plan work in my den was certain brilliance; and suggesting the execution? How could ol' Mac resist?"

"He couldn't. And that temper's going to get us exactly what we want. And ol' Mac won't have an ounce of strength left." He kissed her again, chuckling as he did, "We'll finally get everything we wanted, _Mia bellezza._"

Jezabella purred at him and kissed him again, incredibly turned on by the sound of her native tongue. "_Mia amore_." She whispered, kissing him again. This continued for a few minutes at a time, then she paused, remembering something she hadn't told him, "Tugger and I were walking today…" she mentioned.

Barnabas frowned, seeming immediately put off at the sound of the Curious Cat's name. Jezabella had been in place with the Jellicles on orders of Mac, and though she had been giving information to Barney, he had not been pleased she had to see Tugger on the side. "So?" he grumbled, unhappy with the topic.

"I followed him after I said I was going… he met someone quite interesting."

Barnabas raised an eyebrow faintly, "…Go on."

"A little kitten. Tortishell and quite skinny." Jezabella smile, "He was with a queen, you see; fresh off a boat; don't know where from, but she didn't look happy to see Tugger."

"Why should any of this interest me?" He hissed, impatient now with the subject at hand.

Jezabella simply smirked, "its Mac's daughter, Barney. She's back."

"Zelaphelia?" Barnabas immediately leaned up from the desk and frowned, "Why didn't you tell me sooner? The minute Marceth realizes-"

"Marceth isn't going to realize anything; not right now, at least." Jezabella frowned back at him, finding a huge disapproval of being snapped at. "She's in London, yes. And the kit, I think is her kid…I thought maybe… Why don't we use that?"

"Oh really, how would you suggest we do that?"

"Manipulators like us? How do you not use a mystics emotions against him? Why not do what Mac couldn't do, Barney? Let's destroy the Jellicles, and that queen could be our key."

Barnabas stared at her, but then he seemed to realize the meaning behind her words. The Jellicles were the largest tribe in all Great Britain. Not only would their defeat be a great victory for the Warehouse, Barnabas would have already conquered more in London than he bargained for. He grinned as he kissed his mate several time, guiding her back to the bed, "I love it when you're so devious," he whispered huskily, "tell me all about your idea, baby…"

...

**A/N: After a whole year, why? Because SummerRose was not only incredibly lazy, she got into different things, had school, focused on college, and now she had nothing better to do at 2am than write the rest of chapter two that she started when she was a Junior in highschool. Well, kitties, it's done, and I may just have time to continue! We'll see what happens. ;)**


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